Shoe sole fitting machine



@Qfi. 29, 1940. STAQEVY 2,219,341

SHOE SOLE FITTING MACHINE Filed April 13, 1939 s SheeEs-Sheet 1 at 2, 194%. E, w, sT C Y 2,219341 saon SOLE FITTINGMACHINE I Filed April 13, 1959 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Oct. 29, 1940.. E. WpSTACEY SHOE SOLE FITTING MACHINE 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed April 15, 1939 I I aw w) IIL Tlg. 6.

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movement of the tool Patented Oct. 29, 1940 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE I 2,219,341 snoe sou: FITTING MACHINE Ernest W.

United Shoe or Flemington, N. W

Applic'ation April 13, 1939, Serial No. 267,597

14 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in sole fitting machines and is herein illustrated as embodied in a machine of the type disclosed in United States Patent No. 2,081,961, granted June 1, 1937, upon an application filed in my name on September 9, 1935.

In machines of the type disclosed in the abovementioned patent, the tool carrier is swung from an inoperative position to an operative position where the tools are presented to the work and a sensing mechanism on the tool carrier contacts a work holder which, in the machine illustrated in the patent, is the pattern that supports the sole member. The movement of the tool carrier to its operative position is quite rapid and as a result the sensing mechanism on the tool carrier strikes the pattern a sharp blow.

With this in view,it is an object of my invention to check the speed at which the tool carrier approaches the work support so that the sensing mechanism will be eased into engagement with the work support and damage to those parts will be avoided. To this end a checking device is mounted for movement with the tool carrier and is arranged for operation by a cam member as the tool carrier approaches its operative position.

The operative position into which the tool carrier is moved is varied with the width of the pattern in the machine. To make the operation of the checking device substantially uniform for all widths of patterns, means are provided foradjusting the cam member so that it operates the checking device at about the same distance from all patterns regardless of their widths. As illustrated, this means comprises a pattern sensing member which adjusts the position of the cam member in accordance with the size of the pattern in the machine to change the location on the path traversed by the checking device at which the check is operated.

In machines of the type mentioned above, carrier is usually initiated by a manually operated trip. If this trip is accidentally operated when there is no pattern in the machine, the tool carrier will swing inwardly and strike the pattern holder with considerable force which is liable to cause damage to the machine parts. To avoid this danger, another feature of my invention relates to a control mechanism for preventing movement of the tool carrier to its operative position when there is no pattern in the machine. As illustrated, this mechanism consists of a latch which is moved into and out of the path of an abutment on the tool carrier by the pattern sensing member, the movement of (Cl. lit-25) the latch into the path of the abutment being caused by the pattern sensing means when there is no pattern in the machine.

These and other features of the invention will appear more fully from the following detailed description when read in connection with the accompanying drawings and will be pointed out in the appended claims.-

In the drawings,

Fig. 1 is a view in elevation showing a portion of the machine disclosed in my above-mentioned patent having a preferred form of my invention embodied therein;

Fig. 2 is a top plan view, partly in section, showing the relationship of the mechanism which comprises my invention when a pattern is in the machine and the cutter head is in its operative position;

Fig. 3 is a plan view similar to Fig. 2 showing the position of the parts when the cutter head is in its inoperative position;

Fig. 4 isa plan view, partly in section, showing the position of the parts when the pattern is removed from the machine and the cutter head is in its inoperative position;

Fig. 5 is an elevation showing the rear end of the air check, and

Fig. 6 is a view taken along line VI-VI of Fig. 5 looking in the direction of the arrows and showing the construction of the inlet valve and the relief valve in the air check.

Referring to the drawings, It indicates a pattern which is mounted on pattern supporting posts l2, l4 carried by a rotatable jack .table It. The jack table I6 is, in turn, mounted on a jack base l8 which is operated by a gear mechanism (not shown) and is guided in its movements by a guide bar 20 fastened to the frame of the machine. Secured to the side of the jack base it is a block 22 which strikes a dog 24 when the jack base has made a complete revolution and thereby disengages the jack driving mechanism and stops further movement of the jack base. A cutter head 28 is mounted on a swinging arm 46 which moves it from an inoperative position (Fig. 3) to an operative position (Fig. 2) where the cutters engage the heel end of a sole blank on the pattern to. This point of engagement is the starting point for the operation which proceeds around the toe and heel ends of the pattern and back to the starting point, whereupon the cutter head is moved back to its inoperative position. The parts so far described correspond to similar parts in the disclosure of the above-mentioned Patent No. 2,081,961 to which reference may be hate this condition, the present machine is prowhich is keyed to a segmental gear 34 (Fig. 4). The segmental gear 34 is driven from a'shaft 36,.

which corresponds to the shaft 562 in my patented disclosure, the drive beingIt'hrough-a pinion 38 mounted on the shaft 36, and an; idler gear40to the segmental gear 34. The gearing just described is enclosed in a casing 42 (Figs. 1 and 2) through which extend the upper end of the shaft 32 and also the upper end of a pin 44 upon which the idler gear 40 is rotatably mounted. At the completionof an operation upon a sole member the shaft:.36 is operated in the same manner as the shaft 562 in the above-mentioned patent and operates the gears 38,46, 34 to cause a counterclockwise movement of the arm 36 which pulls I the cutter head back to its (Fig. 3).

A swinging arm 46 which carries the cutter head 28 corresponds to the arm 92 in the aforeinoperative position mentioned patent and is moved from its inoperative position (Fig. 3) to its operative position (Fig 2) by a heavy spring (not shown) which corresponds to the spring 222 in the patent; In the machine illustrated'in the patent the swinging movement of the cutter head arm under the urging of the heavy spring is quite rapid and causes the guide rolls and gages on the cutter head to strike the edge of the pattern with a sharp blow which eventually damages the pattern. To elimivided with means for checking the speed of the swinging arm46 as the cutter head approaches its operative position. This checking means consists 'bf an'air check 48 mounted on the swinging arm 46 and disposed for engagement with a cam member 58 when theswinging arm 46 is moved forward to bring the cutter head to its operative position. The air checkconsists of a piston 52 slidably mounted in a cylinder '54 (Figs. 2 and 4) and urged outwardly therefrom by a spring 56 The portion of the spring 56 extending between the piston 52 and the end wall 66 of the cylinder is prevented from buckling and kinking when the piston is moved back into the cylinder by a rod 58 which is mounted in the end wall 66 of the cylinder and extends through the opening formed by the coils of the spring 56 into a central opening in the piston 52. -The checking effect of the air check 48 is regulated by a valve 64 (Fig. 6) which controls the rate at which the air confined in the cylinder 54 escapes through a passageway 62 in the cylinder end 'wall 60 when the piston 52 ber 56. Upon the return of the piston 52 to its outermost-positionunderthe urging of the spring 56, air is admitted to the cylinder through an inlet valve '66 which is also located in the end wall 60. The outward movement of the piston 52 in the cylinder 54 is limited by a screw 68 (Fig. 4) whichis mounted in the side wall of the cylinder with its end portion seated in a groove 16 formed in the side of the piston 52. a The end of the cylinder 54 isprovided with oppositely disposed recesses 92 (Figs. 1 and 2) which tion (Fig. 2).

pattern.

are slightly wider than the thickness of the cam member 50 so that the end portion of the cam member can pass through the end of the cylinder as the cutter head nears its operative position and thus take care of adjustments of the cam member which are described further on in this specification. Thus, when the cutter head swings inwardly from its inoperative position (Fig. 3)

the roller 53on the head of the' piston 52 will strike the inclined face 5| 'on the cam member 56 a short distance in advance of the operative position of the cutter head. Further movement of the cutter: head toward its operative position causes the roller 53 to ride down the inclined face 5l of the cam member 50 thereby forcing the piston52 back into the cylinder 54 and checking the approach speed of the cutter head. When the piston is forced into the cylinder a desired distance, the roller 53 rides onto a vertical face 55 on the cam member 50 and after the cutter head reaches immediately thereits operative posi- As'the operative position towhich the cutter head is moved varies with the width of the pattern in the machine, provision must be made for adjusting the cam member 50 so that the air check is operated at about the same distance from all patterns regardless of their widths. In the present machine this adjustment of the cam member is made by a feeler 12 which engages the toe end of the pattern in the machine and correlates the position of the cam member with respect to the width of the pattern. This adjustment of the cam with respect to the widths of the different patterns will not be absolutely uniform due to variations in the ratio between the pattern lengths and the width of the heel portions of patterns of different sizes and styles; however, these variations are small enough so that a satisfactory adjustment is'effected.

The feeler 12 is connected to the cam member 50 through an intermediate linkage as followsthe feeler is adjustably connected at 14 to an upstanding boss 16 (Fig. 1) on one end of an arm 18, the other end of which is adjustably connected at to one end of a. lever 82. The lever 82 is pivoted on a lug 84 (Fig. 1) and is urged in a clockwise direction by a. spring 81 sleeved on the lug 84 so that the feeler 12 is held against the periphery of the pattern in the machine and when the pattern is removed from the machine the feeler is moved inwardly until it contacts the pattern supporting post l2. The opposite end of the lever 82 is connected at 85 to the end of an arm 86 on the cam member 50 so that the cam member partakes of the movement of the feeler Y12 and is moved back and forth with respect 3150 the path traced by the roller 53 on the piston 54 as it moves with the cutter head from the latters inoperative position (Figs. 3 and 4) to its operative position (Fig. 2). The back and forth movement of the cam member 50 is guided by the upper end of the pin 44 which extends through an elongated slot 88 in the cam member (Figs. 2 and 4).

The construction just described takes care of variations in widths of patterns as follows. Assume, for example, that a 4A misses pattern has been replaced by a 9D mens pattern which is appreciably longer and wider than the 4A misses This change will cause the feeler 12 to take a position further away from the support post l2 which will cause a forward displacement of the cam member 56 moving it further into the path of the roller 53 as it moves with the Ill cutter head to the latters operative position. This displacement of the cam member will cause the roller 53 to strike the inclined surface 51 sooner and hence the earlier operation of the air check.

In the machine illustrated in the above mentioned patent, the cutter head is swung inwardly into its operative position when the trip mechanism is actuated. If this trip mechanism should accidentally be operated when there is no pattern in the machine, the cutter head would be swung inwardly and strike the pattern supporting posts and very likely the posts or the head or both would be damaged. In the present machine, accidental inward movement of the cutter head is prevented by a latching device which becomes operative when a pattern is removed from the machine. This latching device consists of an abutment 94 mounted on the frame of the cylinder 54 (Fig. 1) and a latch 96 mounted on the pin 44 (Fig. 4) and positioned to swing in the plane of the abutment 94 so that it can be moved into and out of the path of the abutment 94 as the latter moves inwardly with the cutter head toward the pattern. The latch 96 is moved into and out of the path of the abutment 94 by a pin I on the cam 50, the pin extending between a tail 98 on the latch 96 and the end of a spring I02 connected to the latch 96 by screws 103 (Figs. 3 and 4). Thus, when a pattern is placed in the machine the feeler 12 and lever 82 will be moved in a clockwise direction about the stud 84 to engage the end of the pattern thereby causing an inward movement of the cam 50 and the pin I00 which will in turn cause a counterclockwise movement of the latch 96 moving it out of the path of the abutment 94. Upon removal of the pattern from the machine, the feeler 12 will be moved inwardly until it engages'the pattern support post l2. This inward movement of the feeler 12 will cause a corresponding outward movement of the cam 50 and pin I00 which will result in a corresponding clockwise movement of the latch 90 carrying it into the path of the abutment 04.

To prepare the illustrated machine for operation when there is no pattern on it, the operator moves the feeler 12 to the left, as viewed in Fig. 2, and a pattern I0 is placed on the pattern supporting posts I2, l4 after which the feeler I2 is released and is moved inwardly into abutting engagement with the end of the pattern by the spring 81. The movement of the feeler I2 into engagement with the end of the pattern causes a corresponding inward movement of the cam 50 which correlates it with the width of the heel portion of the pattern placed in the machine so that the air check will be operated just before the cutter head reaches its operative position and thus insure that the sensing mechanism on the cutter head will be eased into engagement with the edge face of the pattern. The inward movement of the cam 50 causes a corresponding movement of the pin 100 which moves the latch 00 out of the path traced by the abutment 94 as the arm 46 is swung inwardly and holds it in this cooperative position as long as a pattern is in the machine. When the pattern is removed from the machine the spring 81 causes the feeler '12 to move inwardly until it engages the pattern supporting post II. This movement will cause a corresponding outward movement of the cam 50 which, through the pin I00 will cause the latch 96 to move into the path traced by the abutment 94 and thus prevent the cutter head from being moved inwardly to its operative position in the event that the trip mechanism is accidentally operated.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. In a machine for operating upon soles, a jack mounted for moving a sole member past a point of operation, a cutter head mounted for movement from an inoperative position to an operative position at the point of operation, and machine means automatically operative as the cutter head approaches its operative position for checking the approaching speed of the cutter head as it moves to its operative position.

2. A machine as defined in claim 1 in which the cutter head is mounted for swinging movement between its inoperative and operative positions.

3. In a machine for operating upon soles, a rotatable jack, a sole pattern mounted on the jack, a cutter head having control means thereon arranged for engagement with the sole pattern y when the cutter head is in its operative position adjacent to said pattern, means for swinging the cutter head from an inoperative position to the operative position, and mechanical means for automatically regulating the speed of the movement of the cutter head as it moves to its operative position, said means being so arranged as to ease the control means'on the cutter head into engagement with the pattern, to avoid damage to the control means and the pattern.

4. In a machine for operating upon soles, a jack mounted for moving a sole member past a point of operation, a pattern on said jack, a cutter head having a sensing member thereon, said cutter head and sensing member being mounted to swing from an inoperative position to an operative position where the sensing member engages the periphery of the pattern, and a dash pot for checking the speed of the cutter head as it approaches the pattern to ease the sensing member into engagement with the pattern.

5. In a machine for operating upon soles, a jack mounted for moving a sole member past a point of operation, a pattern on the jack, a cutter head mounted to swing from aninoperative position to an operative position adjacent to the pattern, a dash pot mounted for movement with the cutter head, a cam member disposed in the path of movement of said dash pot, and a pattern sensing member for correlating the position of the cam member with the size of the pattern on the jack.

6. In a machine for operating upon soles, a jack mounted for moving a. sole member past a point of operation, a pattern on the jack, a cutter head mounted to swing from an inoperative position to an operative position adjacent to the pattern, an air check mounted for movement with the cutter head, a cam member mounted for movement in the plane of movement of the air check, and a lever connected with the cam member and having a portion thereof disposed for sensing engagement with the pattern to correlate the position of the cam with the size of the pattern on the jack.

"7. A machine for operating upon soles, comprising a jack having pattern mounting means thereon, a cutter head mounted to swing from an inoperative position to an operative position where it is adapted to engage a sole on a pattern mounted on the jack, and means for preventing the movement of the cutter head to its operative position when there is no pattern on the jack.

8. A machine for operating upon soles, comprising a jack having pattern mounting means thereon, a cutter head mounted to swing from an inoperative position to an operative position where it is adapted to engage a sole member on the jack, trip mechanism for initiating the movement of the cutter head from its inoperative position to its operative position, sensing means for determining the absence of a pattern from the pattern mounting means, and a latch controlled by the sensing means for preventing the movement of the cutter head to the operative position if the trip mechanism is operated when there is no pattern in the machine.

9. A machine for operating upon soles, comprising a jack mounted for moving a sole member past a point of operation, means on the jack for supporting a sole pattern, a cutter head mounted to swing from an inoperative position to an operative position where it is adapted to engage a sole member on a pattern on the pattern supporting means, an abutment movable with the cutter head, sensing means for determining the absence of a pattern from the jack, and a stop controlled by the sensing means and movable thereby into and out of the path of the abutment on the cutter head, the stop being moved into the path of the abutment in the absence of a sole pattern from the jack to prevent the movement of the cutter head to its operative position.

10. A machine for operating upon soles, comprising a jack mounted for moving a sole past a point of operation, a pattern mounting member on said jack, a cutter head mounted to swing from an inoperative position to an operative position where it is adapted to engage a sole member on the jack, means for checking the approach speed of the cutter head as it moves toward its operative position, means for preventing the movement of the cutter head into its operative position, and pattern sensing means for controlling the aforementioned means, said pattern sensing means rendering the speed checking means operative when there is a pattern on the pattern mounting means and rendering operative the means for preventing movement of the cutter head when there is no pattern on the pattern mounting means.

11. A machine for operating upon shoes, comprising a jack for moving a sole past a point of operation, a pattern mounting member on said jack, a cutter head mounted to swing from an inoperative position to an operative position where it engages a sole member carried by a pattern on the pattern mounting means, means movable with the cutter head to check the approach speed of the cutter head as it moves toward its operative position, an operating member for the speed checking means, a latch for preventing movement of the cutter head into its operative position, and pattern sensing means for controlling the latch and the operating member for the speed checking means; said pattern sensing means being arranged to render operative the operating member for the speed checking means when there is a pattern on the jack and to call said latch into operation in the absence of a pattern on the jack.

12. A machine for operating upon shoes, comprising a jack mounted for moving a sole past a point of operation, a pattern mounting member on said jack, a cutter head mounted to swing from an inoperative position to an operative position adjacent to a pattern on the pattern mounting means, a dash pot movable with the cutter head for checking the speed of the cutter head as it moves toward the operative position, an abutment on said cutter head ofiset from the dash pot, a dash pot operating member mounted for movement relatively to the dash pot in the plane of the dash pot, a latch mounted for movement into the path of movement of the abutment as it moves toward its operative position with the cutter head, and a swingably mounted pattern sensing means operatively connected with the dash pot operating member and the stop member, said pattern sensing means being arranged to contact the periphery of a pattern on the pattern mounting means and while in that position to hold the stop out of the path of the abutment and to position the dash pot operating member in a position-determined by the size of the pattern in the machine and upon-removal of a pattern from the pattern mounting means to move the stop into the path of the abutment on the cutter head to prevent movement of the cutter head to its operative position.

13. In a machine for operating upon soles, a jack mounted for moving a sole past a point of operation, a cutter head mounted for movement from an inoperative position to'the point of operation, automatically operative means for checking the approaching speed of the cutter head as it moves to its operative position, and means for adjusting the operating range of the automatically operative checking means whereby the operating range can be correlated to soles of different sizes.

14. In a machine for operating upon soles, a jack mounted for moving a sole past a point of operation, a pattern on the jack, a cutter head mounted to swing from an inoperative position to an operative position adjacent to the pattern, mechanical means for checking the approaching speed of the cutter head as it moves to its operative position, and pattern sensing means for correlating the operation of the mechanical checking means with the size of the pattern on the jack.

ERNEST W. STACEY. 

